Pietermaritzburg World Cup Race Report

Hi all!

I am so happy right now, yesterday we finally picked up our new Canfields and gear from Oneal!

Getting back to the WC, we left last Tuesday for Piertmaritzburg and as per usuall there was drama...
First of all, never fly anywhere after the Argus cycle tour! Before we left from CPT they told us our bikes would'nt make it to PMB before Friday! That was not on, so we tried to sort it out but it was taking so long and we had to fly, there were 6 of us, myself, Pottie, Darryn, Tamara, Christian and Tommy. I had safely boarded the plane while the rest were still checking there bikes in! It took so long, they delayed the plane for them and they were sprinting to make it on board, thankfully they all made it with no bikes.

When we got to PMB we all spoke to the Mango customer service and managed to get them to send the bikes up on the last flight at 19:40, it was 12:45 at this stage.... this meant a long wait. Finally they all arrived except for darryns bike. They did deliver it the next day though.

We had a rough start but we were finally settled in at the Brownings and were really excited about the track. Pottie and myself decided that we were going to hit the gully and tables first run which might not have been the best idea as we both came up way short! We did get them 2nd run and I got the money maker 3rd run. I was feeling good and really happy to dialled with the jumps as there were a lot of riders struggling with them.

With 8 runs under my belt it was time for qualifying.... I was really excited and tense at the same time, I knew I had the speed, I just did'nt want to crash.  Thankfully I had a great run and ended up 55th which was my first ever world cup qualification in downhill! I was so pumped!

On the Saturday we watched the XC and just did 2 runs in the morning, I did'nt want to get tired for the final on Sunday, it was a long track. On Saturday afternoon it poured down with rain, I thought it was going to be comedy show case on Sunday. I picked up my new Dbx Pro from Leatt which cheerd me up! Luckily we woke up to warm dry weather,I did 2 runs in the morning which were a bit slippery but not as bad as I thought so I was ready for the final.

I wanted to improve my position from qualifying so I pushed hard, I had a good run, 4 sec faster than qualifyling but only good enough for 54th, one place better. I was happy because I was only 2 sec off the top 40. This is a great start to the year and a huge confidence booster for me! John Wakefield knows how to get you in shape!
Also just imagin what I would've done with a Canfield and a dropper seat post :)

I want to thank my awesome sponsors who make this possible, Canfield Factory team, Seattle Coffee Co, Leatt, Virgin Active, Csixx, Adidas eyewear, Evoc and Red Bull ZA!

I would also like to thank my parents, the Browning famliy and Avis Van Rental for the help and support in PMB!

Untill next time...